Another Study About Vitamin D

This interesting study was emailed to me in an MSIF research news email: 

Sun Exposure, Vitamin D Intake and Progression to Disability among Veterans with Progressive Multiple Sclerosis.
Background: Early life events have been suggested to influence multiple sclerosis (MS) susceptibility, and to potentially modulate its clinical course. We assessed vitamin D-related exposures from childhood to disease onset and their associations with MS progression. Methods: Among veterans in the Multiple Sclerosis Surveillance Registry, 219 reported having the progressive form and met the inclusion criteria. Participants reported their past sun exposure, vitamin D-related intake and age at disability milestones using the Patient-Determined Disease Steps (PDDS). The Cox proportional hazards model was used to examine the association between vitamin D-related exposures and time (years) to disability. Results: Low average sun exposure in the fall/winter before disease onset was associated with an increased risk of progressing to a PDDS score of 8 (hazard ratio, HR: 2.13, 95% confidence interval, CI: 1.20-3.78), whereas use of cod liver oil during childhood and adolescence was associated with a reduced risk (HR: 0.44, 95% CI: 0.20-0.96). Conclusions: These results suggest that exposure to vitamin D before MS onset might slow disease-related neurodegeneration and thus delay progression to disability among patients with the progressive subtype.

Really makes me wish I would have started taking a Vitamin D supplement years ago!  Or spent more time in the sun!  I wish I would have known to get my vitamin D levels checked earlier.  Hopefully taking a vitamin D supplement now is helping to slow progression along with the injections and other vitamins/supplements.  I realize that lack of vitamin D isn't the cause of MS, but it sure does seem to have some significant correlations.  Always interesting to learn more about the disease.